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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: press · date · prune · bear · bound · rock · cell · degree

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. press — newspapers
  3. rock — music
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bound — tied together
  6. press — a publisher
  7. bound — obliged
  8. degree — an amount
  9. press — to push
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. date — the fruit
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cell — a phone
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bear — the animal
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. cell — in biology
  20. bound — certain
  21. degree — from a university
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — to trim
  24. prune — the fruit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com